The United Kingdom’s Royal Navy is preparing to deploy additional forces to the Strait of Hormuz to counter potential mine threats in the region.
According to the Associated Press, citing Royal Navy command sources, the auxiliary vessel RFA Lyme Bay, currently stationed in Gibraltar, is expected to head toward the Middle East following the recent understanding reached between the United States and Iran.
The vessel is reportedly equipped with specialized mine countermeasure systems, including autonomous underwater vehicles fitted with hydroacoustic sensors for mine detection and neutralization operations. Before transiting the Suez Canal and proceeding to the Persian Gulf, RFA Lyme Bay is expected to join the Royal Navy destroyer HMS Dragon and allied naval vessels.
The Royal Navy has indicated that Iran may have deployed various types of naval mines across the Strait of Hormuz. These could include moored mines, bottom mines, and rising or rocket-propelled variants capable of activation through physical contact, acoustic signals, or magnetic field changes.
According to British naval sources, the autonomous systems aboard RFA Lyme Bay can scan the seabed and surrounding waters using hydroacoustic technologies and generate threat maps nearly twice as fast as conventional mine countermeasure vessels.
